Cycle Touring Blog
Getting Stew to attach my DIY ‘Just Married’ sign to his bike wasn’t the easiest task I’ve had, but he did eventually agree to attach it for one bike ride only 😋
I don’t even know how to write a post about Sean and Vee that does justice to how special they are to us: two people who became so instrumental in our cycling adventure and marriage.
Stew and I have been following Cheryl for YEARS. We watched as she travelled New Zealand in her van and hoped to meet her one day.
And we did it – just us, Sean (our celebrant), his wife, Vee (a witness), and Chris (witnesses and photographer) – we eloped in New Zealand.
We went out for dinner in Springfield and I’m pretty sure it made me really sick and our wedding was just days away 😫
Arthur’s Pass Village is right at the top of the mountain so we had a stunning day to Springfield. There was a big hill in between, which was a lot after Arthur’s, but it really was gorgeous out there.
Oh my goodness. Arthur’s Pass was next level hard. We knew it was steep on the approach but it really was something else!
By the evening, yesterdays rain had turned into heavy, heavy rain and extreme winds. There was a full storm with thunder and lightning through the night.
Hari Hari was just 38 miles form Franz Josef. A big storm was brewing, but we figured we could make it there, then take a day off to miss the worst of the storm the next day.
Stepping out today was like being in a different world after yesterday! It was bright blue skies and everything looked so beautiful.
This day was a complete washout. Oh how it rained and rained and rained. I’m amazed Stew got any pictures to be honest because my phone stayed in my pocket the whole time.
We were keen to get over the road closure and passed the landslide so we set off early this morning. We left the house at 7am and it was icy cold ❄️
Wanaka has a famous tree! It’s known as #ThatWanakaTree, so of course we popped down to take a look and take some not so impressive pictures of it.
We planned to stay in Wanaka only one night, leaving for Makarora the next day However, there were weather warnings for strong winds and rains. So, we took one day off.
With the views between Cromwell and Wanaka being so similar to the day before, I nearly didn’t write a post, but then I thought, who doesn’t want to see these pictures?!
‘I really didn’t want New Zealand to be the most beautiful country because it’s quite cliche,’ said Stew, ‘It is true though.’ New Zealand is the most beautiful country. You just can’t deny it.
Unbeknown to us, New Zealand is a hot spot for an elopement wedding, And we were engaged...
Our time in Queenstown was like a holiday! But I can’t say the same for the flight. The journey was quite turbulent, the worst we’d both experienced.
After five and half years of (impatiently) waiting, Stew proposed to me in Queenstown, New Zealand. This “Yes,” came even easier than when he invited me to cycle around the world one month into dating.
I could not believe our luck when @leaveit2cleave were in Sydney exactly when we were. We’d been planning a meeting for months. The four of us got talking pre-pandemic when we were both our cycle touring.
We really liked Sydney! Due to our admin error when booking flights we ended up with just three or four nights in Sydney and in that time we had to explore the city, pack down the bikes and visit some lovely friends!
We had loads to be honest and we could often find somewhere comfortable to eat, some even with a BBQ so we could make a hot drink or meal on the roadside without using our gas.
The east coast of Aus had our legs in absolute bits! I had a lot of misconceptions about Aus. I thought it was all sunshine, beaches, deserts and flat lands. Well, it isn’t 😂